Legacy Resorts

Never Mind

jlb wrote:

Anyone here involved with the problems being encountered by legacy resorts?

To which specific "problems being encountered" do you refer? As an owner at several different "legacy" resorts (and a sitting BoD member at one of them), I am aware that there are numerous, assorted issues of current and / or future concern. I am directly and routinely "involved with" ALL of those issues and would be glad to participate in discussing them.

One major issue facing many "legacy" resorts today, particularly in Florida (where I believe you live) is that of "sunset clauses" in the underlying governing documents (a.k.a. Condo Covenants & Restrictions, often more simply abbreviated as CC&R's).

These "sunset clauses" may identify a specific "end date" for the property as a timeshare (often 40 years after initial construction in Florida CC&R's ).The end of that 40 year time period is fast approaching for many "legacy resorts" in FL, originally built in the early 1980's. The "problems" associated with sunset clauses are many, notably including widely different language and mechanisms (and owner vote requirements) reflected within those CC&R's. Some CC&R's have quite onerous majority vote standards and requirements. Others are just very poorly and very vaguely worded on the subject. Some HOA's, even today, are just plain clueless about proactively tackling this very real and imminent "problem". At all of the facilities at which we own intervals, the CC&R sunset clause "end date" issue has already been addressed and formally, legally extended by owner majority vote. Unfortunately, at some other places, an "ostrich" (non) strategy seems to be in place so far (i.e., stick your head in the sand and just ignore the issue). Those latter chickens will of course come home to roost at some point, with unintended and unexpected (and unwelcome) consequences.

Aging infrastructure (and the cost to support and maintain it) is a separate but related issue at "legacy" resorts. An aging owner base is also a concern, since there seems to be much less interest in timeshare ownership in younger generations, particularly among millennials, so keeping a strong ownership base (and reasonable maintenance fees) is a challenge. Some aging owners who now want "out" of their ownership obligations are unwilling to exert much (if any) effort to find a new owner for the intervals they once voluntarily chose to purchase. Some even want or expect their Homeowners Association to willingly take over their (freely chosen) personal responsibility and legal obligation; few HOA's will ever do so.

I am otherwise unclear about any other (unspecified) "problems" at legacy resorts to which your post makes only vague passing reference, but I would certainly enjoy engaging in substantive discussion once / if you can more clearly identify your intended point.

Ken, Perhaps they were referring to the new system Hyatt is now using(or trying), Since being bought out by HVGG/ILG and only renting the Hyatt name, they have come up with all sorts of ways to make money. If you had bought into Hyatt yrs. ago when they sold deeded weeks, you are now a "legacy" owner with HRC (Hyatt residence club) anyone who buys in now, is buying points to use in HPC(no one has figured out the acronym). It seems to be a lot like Marriot in that you buy points to use at a resort, that you may or may not be able to use at that resort, but somewhere else. The going fee as stated in the new rules/bylaws, is just under .93 per point, with exceptions for blackout dates, renting your unit/selling your points. What it boils down to if you are a deeded owner(HRC), you're in the cat bird seat, if you buy in now(HPC) you're in the pool with everyone else.

williamp511 wrote:

Ken, Perhaps they were referring to the new system Hyatt is now using (or trying).

You MAY be right, but the generic term "legacy resorts" has actually been around and in routine use in timeshare circles for quite a while now and certainly LONG before Hyatt's recent gyrations attempting (so far, unsuccessfully) to roll out their new "pure points" program. I assumed that poster jlb was referring to "legacy" (i.e., older) timeshare resorts in the generic sense of the term; maybe he will return later to provide some clarification.

See the OP.

We are involved with three legacy resorts, each nearing that 40-year mark. One of them is doing what needs to be done to survive and the other two are not.

In the words of the person who is pretty much in charge of the one that is doing the right things, "There is no good result in doing away with the timeshare plan."

I am also very familiar with one that has not survived, and is going through what has to be gone through to do away with the timeshare plan. I have been following that resort for 18 years.

Anyone else want to talk about that, or is it just not a topic that many timeshare owners care to consider/discuss?

jlb wrote:

Anyone else want to talk about that, or is it just not a topic that many timeshare owners care to consider/discuss?

This "sunset clause" issue and topic has certainly been addressed at some length and in great detail in discussion forums on Timeshare Users Group over the past few years, but that is a very different populace from that of RedWeek forums (and TUG currently consists of 81,000+ registered people).

With no offense or disrespect intended toward RedWeek forum participants, vastly fewer in number to begin with, I would venture to guess that 98+% of RedWeek forum participants don't even know that this issue exists in the first place ----- and that the rest just don't care. I'd be delighted to be mistaken and will gladly stand to be corrected by seeing some other concerned and interested responses to your inquiry, but I'm placing my bet on "crickets".

Well, if anyone wants to pursue it, I will share what I know.

It's a shame there's not more action here, or more owners in older resorts.

We have been timesharing for 30 years. We've owned at several resorts. We've bought resale, association foreclosures, direct from PCCs for "free", and have never been as pleased as the stand-alone, legacy resort we bought into last year. It is a place a confidante at RCI suggested more than 10 years ago. It is the first time a timeshare has put money in our pocket while giving us year-round benefits.

Like I said, it's a shame there's no audience here.

jlb wrote:

It's a shame there's not more action here, or more owners in older resorts.

We have been timesharing for 30 years. We've owned at several resorts. We've bought resale, association foreclosures, direct from PCCs for "free", and have never been as pleased as the stand-alone, legacy resort we bought into last year. It is a place a confidante at RCI suggested more than 10 years ago. It is the first time a timeshare has put money in our pocket while giving us year-round benefits.

Like I said, it's a shame there's no audience here.

It's funny how things work out.

In 1999, we had a problem with an RCI exchange to Apple Valley Resort in Ohio. They cancelled it after confirming it, because a 1-in-4 rule had been enacted. That had been enacted because the resort was struggling and they had hired a marketing firm to try to bail them out. I still remember the exact words of a lady at RCI, "We have a legal department for people like you."

That's funny looking back . . . and we were able to stay there that year any way by booking through another RCI member/friend in that area. We stayed there for half a dozen years.

Anyway, five years later on another forum, I "met" an RCI person who had been involved in that situation, and we became Internet friends and confidantes, he keeping me abreast of things in the Kingdom of Proprietary Secrets.

We used to exchange into SW Florida resorts in January, and I became quite knowledgeable about them. I even kept a database of availability, so, when RCI became Renting Condos Instead, I saw the availability go from as many as 18 choices to none (assuming you don't consider Lehigh Resort Club in crime-ridden Lehigh Acres to be a choice). My "RCI Inside Guy" suggested a homely little beach resort in Englewood, FL, one of those old converted motel places that SW FL has an abundance of.

Well, we started trading into there, and found it to be a perfectly acceptable, extremely comfortable and friendly place, and, as a bonus, a bunch of retired high school coaches and referees from my playing days are there in January.

So, here's the funny part.

Apple Valley Resort, one of the legacy resorts, the place where we had the issue that eventually led to finding "RCI Inside Guy", went belly up, and the owners just recently got their shares of the sale . . . $1200 each, with a small amount more maybe coming later.

But, we are now owners at the (legacy) resort in Englewood, FL, and it has already dealt with the Sunset Clause, and they handle delinquent weeks in an effective and profitable manner, and they have a fair and reasonable annual fee, and they have a rental program, and they have day-use, so they are our year-round beach club.

Life is like a box of . . . . .

Legacy Resorts Deed Back Offer Has anyone done/is currently involved in the Deed Back Offer by Legacy for the $804 fee? The letter came from Legacy Villas at Resort World Condo Assoc and I spoke with Sonia who said the $804 by credit card is for the Quick Claim Deed and there are NO other fees associated with the Deed Back but then it will take 2-3 weeks before I get an Acceptance Letter. The only thing I receive for the $804 is a simple Confirmation that $804 has been received, nothing about what it's supposedly for. Sounds sketchy on one hand but looks legit on another. Help!

There's "legacy resorts", a generic term for really old, mostly-out-of-date resorts, and then there is "Legacy Resort". There is the possibility that Legacy Resort is a legacy resort.

The one week at the one resort we were able to deed back, after badgering them to do so for several years, charged 2 years maintenance fees to do it, so eight hundred bucks is not out of line, if it is legit. Since they are able to rent it out for more than the amount of the annual fee, they finally decided that was a good deal for them.

Most, or a lot, of TS resort Boards are stuck in their ways, and not very adaptable to the times.

We had 8 or so other weeks that I disposed of on my own over the course of as many years.

Timesharing was just a phase we went through for 30-some years.